For many of us, making a secondary, passive income is an attractive prospect, and the emergence of online marketplaces, apps and social media has paved the way for a new generation of online jobs that didn’t exist only a few years ago.
Want to make the most of your time out-of-work, and optimise your income streams? Here are some alternative and unique methods that may appeal to you.
Blogging
Blogging and networking online is a great way of turning your passion for writing into an income stream. Once you’ve accrued a number of followers and authority on your site, you can start to pursue partnerships and sponsored posts, allowing you to make money from your work.
One strategy that you could even look into is acquiring stagnating and inactive blogs with an established readership, and accumulating then with your existing content. This can help to build your brand online.
Investment
Got some money stored away in your account or savings, and unsure of what to do with it? Investing can be a great way of using the money you already have to make further profits, and with property investment companies such as RW Invest employing immersive VR technology to help investors decide, you can complete much of the process from the comfort of your own home.
If you have the capital, property investment is one of the best asset classes you can choose to pursue. A tactile, tangible investment, there is typically less risk involved than say stock trading, for example, and rental yields from your potential tenants will ensure a stable secondary income stream, which can be as hands on or hands-off as you like. Liverpool is an excellent example of a city with plentiful investment opportunity going into the future.
Streaming
Video game entertainment and streaming is quickly shattering the niche glass ceiling it once had, and becoming adopted into the mainstream. With a decent computer setup, a webcam, and a microphone, anyone can start broadcasting themselves out to the world, and while the hopes of making a large sum of money from it are thin, it is certainly possible.
Tyler ‘Ninja’ Blevins, a streamer who achieved monolithic levels of success by playing Fortnite at an elite level, makes a more-than-steady income stream from his monthly subscribers, and has a number of brand deals and sponsorships with companies as a result of his gaming prowess. He recently announced an exclusivity deal with Microsoft’s streaming platform Mixer, and has partnerships with Adidas, Red Bull and even Samsung (during the launch of one of their new smartphones).
Creating and monetising YouTube videos is also something you could consider doing if you have a hobby other than gaming. From how-to tutorials to sketch comedy or impressions videos, this online video sharing platform allows you to make and monetise your own quality-content, and has helped hundreds of ordinary people to reach stardom based on how they share their passion. The market is saturated, however, so if you want to make money from this method, be regular, stay committed, and make sure the content you’re making is unique.
Did you know? For better or for worse, Youtubers seem to be inspiring the next generation of workers. A recent survey carried out showed that American and British children aged 8 to 12 wanted to be a vlogger or youtuber, over being a teacher, musician, or athlete.
eBooks
Writing a book might seem like the opposite end of the pendulum swing after thinking about online competitive video game streaming, and perhaps may appear to be a bit old-fashioned, but that isn’t the case. Many bloggers, writers and hobbyists, experts of their own topics, often write eBooks on their chosen subject matter, selling their valuable information online in a digestible digital format. As the saying goes, ‘if you’re good at something, don’t do it for free’, and this method is that exact sentiment in practice.